showbiz

Joaquin Phoenix quits acting - at 34

Posted on Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008
by Cineplex Entertainment

Jailhouse rock

Joaquin Phoenix is swapping Golden Globes for an acoustic guitar.

The twice Oscar nominated thesp announced his retirement from acting in San Francisco while talking to a reporter from TV's "Extra" during a charity benefit recently, reports The Guardian.

Phoenix was on hand as part of a one-off performance of Ernest Hemingway's "The World of Nick Adams", alongside bold-name types like Julia Roberts, Jack Nicholson, Sean Penn, Warren Beatty and Danny DeVito when he dropped the news on a surprised "Extra" reporter, whose follow-up question was the eloquently-phrased "Are you serious?"

And it seems he is.

His interpretation of Johnny Cash's hits garnered him a Grammy for his work on the soundtrack to Walk the Line and he's tried his hand at directing music videos for the likes of People in Planes, Silversun Pickups and She Wants Revenge, making his leap into the music world perhaps at least a little expected.

And this supposed retirement isn't Phoenix' first breather from the bright lights of Hollywood. In the early '90s, when Joaquin was acting under the name Leaf for some reason, he turned his back on Tinseltown to travel to South America with his father. After the tragic death of his brother River in 1993, Phoenix again retreated from the public eye after his frantic 9-1-1 call was replayed by the media the world over.

As to whether or not the third time's the charm, actor Casey Affleck, who was on hand during the event when Phoenix dropped the news, had this to say to “Extra”: "I don't think he's kidding. He's got music and stuff."

That about says it all, doesn't it.

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    • Ruthless
    • Written at 3:43 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008

    • Incredible Move - I give it 1 year!

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